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Randy Quaid | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Quaid in 2008 | |
| Born | (1950-10-01)October 1, 1950 (age 75) Houston, Texas, U.S. |
| Alma mater | University of Houston |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1971–present |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 1 |
| Relatives |
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Randy Randall Rudy Quaid[2] (born October 1, 1950) is an American actor.
He was nominated for anAcademy Award, aBAFTA Award and aGolden Globe Award for his role inThe Last Detail in 1973. In 1978, he co-starred as a prisoner inMidnight Express. Quaid also won aGolden Globe and was nominated for anEmmy Award for his portrayal of U.S. PresidentLyndon Johnson inLBJ: The Early Years (1987).
He also received Emmy nominations for his roles inA Streetcar Named Desire (1984) andElvis (2005). Quaid is also known for his roles of Cousin Eddie in theNational Lampoon's Vacation movies and Russell Casse inIndependence Day (1996). He voiced Alameda Slim in the animated featureHome on the Range (2004).
Quaid was born inHouston, Texas, to Juanita Bonniedale "Nita" (née Jordan; 1927–2019), a real estate agent, and William Rudy Quaid (1923–1987), an electrician.[3] Quaid hasEnglish,Scots-Irish, andCajun ancestry.[4] Through his father, Quaid is a first cousin, twice removed, of cowboy performerGene Autry.[5] Randy Quaid grew up inBellaire, Texas,[6] a small city surrounded by Houston, and in southwest Houston. He is the older brother of actorDennis Quaid.
In high school, he took a class in drama on a whim, although he didn't expect he would enjoy the lectures. After the third day, however, he was captivated by the course and decided to make acting his professional goal.[7] He continued studying acting at theUniversity of Houston. During one course, his teacher sent him to audition forPeter Bogdanovich, who was casting forThe Last Picture Show, and Quaid won the role in what became his debut film.[7]
Randy Quaid has appeared in over 90 films.Peter Bogdanovich discovered him when Quaid was a student at theUniversity of Houston, and he received his first exposure in Bogdanovich'sThe Last Picture Show. His character escorts Jacy Farrow (Cybill Shepherd) to a late-night indoor skinny-dip at a swimming pool. Other Bogdanovich films he appeared in areWhat's Up, Doc? andPaper Moon.
Quaid's first major critically acclaimed role was inThe Last Detail (1973). He played Larry Meadows, a youngUnited States Navy sailor on his way to serve a harsh sentence for petty theft.[8]Jack Nicholson starred as a sailor assigned to transport him to prison. Quaid was nominated for anAcademy Award for Best Supporting Actor,Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture, and aBAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role.
Quaid appeared oppositeCharles Bronson in the 1975action film of aMexicanprison escapeBreakout, based on actual events. In 1976, he appeared oppositeMarlon Brando inThe Missouri Breaks. In 1978 Quaid had a supporting role in theAlan Parker dramaMidnight Express, about Americans and an Englishman imprisoned in Turkey.[9]
In 1983, Quaid portrayed Cousin Eddie inNational Lampoon's Vacation. Quaid appeared in four of the seven films in theNational Lampoon'sVacation film series as the jovialredneck cousin (through marriage) toBeverly D'Angelo, wife ofChevy Chase's Clark Griswold. In 1987, he won aGolden Globe Award and was nominated for anEmmy for his portrayal of PresidentLyndon Johnson inLBJ: The Early Years. Quaid said that he had wanted to play Johnson since becoming an actor.[10] "I responded to him and his wants and needs in a way I've never done with any other character," he said. Quaid also tried to portray what he learned were Johnson's political attitude:
He was on the side of the people; he did a lot for racial equality; he had the ability to look at both sides of an issue and bring two opposing sides together; he was a man of great heart and compassion ... He thought he could handle theViet Cong the way he handled people in Texas. He thought he could reason with them. But he had no understanding of them or their culture.[10]
Shortly after appearing inNational Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989), the third installment of the series, Quaid was featured inDays of Thunder (1990) asNASCAR car owner and successful car salesman Tim Daland, a determined businessman who expects his team to be top-notch for fans and sponsors. He also starred inQuick Change withBill Murray in 1990, and was the lead in the comediesMartians Go Home andCold Dog Soup, released the same year. In 1992, he playedthe monster inFrankenstein, oppositePatrick Bergin asVictor Frankenstein. Quaid said "I wanted to make the monster not just a monster, but a disfigured man. I wanted to emphasize the human qualities. He is basically struggling for equal rights. He wants anything any man would want."[7]
In 1994, Quaid played a newspaper columnist in the comedy-dramaThe Paper, and had a cameo appearance inMajor League II as Johnny. He later had starring roles in the 1996 filmKingpin, where he played theAmishbowler Ishmael, as well as a role as pilot in the blockbuster science fiction filmIndependence Day, released the same year. He appeared inVegas Vacation (1997), the fourth installment of the series, and was then given the lead role in aVacation spin-off, a made-for-television filmNational Lampoon's Christmas Vacation 2: Cousin Eddie's Island Adventure (2003), which marks his final appearance in the franchise to date.
Quaid was the voice of cattle rustler Alameda Slim in Disney's animated featureHome on the Range (2004), and had a pivotal supporting role inBrokeback Mountain (2005) as rancher Joe Aguirre. He played the King of Spain inGoya's Ghosts (2006). Quaid had a co-starring role in the Canadian independent comedyReal Time (2008), which opened the2008 Slamdance Film Festival.[11] His acclaimed performance earned him aVancouver Film Critics Circle Award.[12]
Following his work in the direct-to-video comedyBalls Out: Gary the Tennis Coach (2009), Quaid's legal troubles prevented him from working for almost a decade.[13]Quaid was not asked to reprise the role of Cousin Eddie inVacation (2015), although the character is verbally referenced. He returned to performing withRob Margolies' weight loss comedyAll You Can Eat (2018),[14] which premiered at the SOHO International Film Festival in June 2018.[15] After the film's September 2018 screening at theNortheast Film Festival, Quaid was nominated for their award for "Best Supporting Actor in a Feature Film".[16]
In 1981, Quaid co-starred in the two part television film adaptation ofJohn Steinbeck's novelOf Mice and Men, playing the character of Lenny. Quaid's other television appearances include a season as aSaturday Night Live (SNL) cast member (1985–1986), the role of gunslingerJohn Wesley Hardin in theminiseriesStreets of Laredo and starring roles in the short-lived seriesThe Brotherhood of Poland, New Hampshire (2003) andDavis Rules (1991–1992).[17]
In 2005, he received nominations from theGolden Globe Awards andEmmy Awards[18] for his portrayal ofElvis Presley's manager,Colonel Tom Parker, in the critically acclaimedCBS television network miniseriesElvis.
He was featured in the highly rated television filmsCategory 6: Day of Destruction (2004) andCategory 7: The End of the World (2005) and starred inLast Rites, a made-for-cable Starz/Encore! premiere movie. Quaid voiced the characterColonel Sanders inradio andtelevision commercials forfast-foodrestaurant chainKentucky Fried Chicken. Quaid's voice-over work also included commercials forCapital One,USAir,Miller and a guest role inThe Ren & Stimpy Show (as Anthony's father in the second-season episode, "A Visit to Anthony"). He narrated the 2006PBS seriesTexas Ranch House.
In 2004, Quaid appeared on stage undertaking the starring role of Frank in the world premiere ofSam Shepard'sThe God of Hell, produced by theNew School University at the Actors Studio Drama School in New York. InThe God of Hell, Quaid's portrayal of Frank, aWisconsin dairy farmer whose home is infiltrated by a dangerous government operative who wants to take over his farm, was well-received and -reviewed by New York City's top theatre critics. It marked the second time that Quaid starred in a Shepard play, the first being the long running Broadway hitTrue West.
In February 2008, a five-member hearing committee ofActors' Equity Association, thelabor union representing American stage actors, banned Quaid for life and fined him more than $81,000. The charges that brought the sanctions originated in a Seattle production ofLone Star Love, aWestern-themed adaptation ofWilliam Shakespeare'sThe Merry Wives of Windsor, in which Quaid played the lead role ofFalstaff. The musical was scheduled to come toBroadway, but producers cancelled it.[19]
Quaid's statement on the charges was "I am guilty of only one thing: giving a performance that elicited a response so deeply felt by the actors and producers with little experience of my creative process that they actually think I am Falstaff."[20]
Quaid has performed musical work, primarily through his band Randy Quaid & The Fugitives. The group released its first single, "Star Whackers", in March 2011.[21] An accompanying film,Star Whackers, was premiered by the Quaids in Vancouver on April 23, 2011.[22]
Quaid was married to Ella Marie Jolly, a former model, on May 11, 1980, and they had a daughter, Amanda Marie, born May 29, 1983. They were separated on September 9, 1986, and divorced on August 24, 1989. He said of their split, "I went through this delayed adolescent thing. I didn't want to be tied down to a family."[23]
Quaid met Evi Motolanez in December 1987 on the set of the filmBloodhounds of Broadway. They wed on October 5, 1989, at theSan Ysidro Ranch, aMontecito, California, resort.[23] His brotherDennis, his future sister-in-lawMeg Ryan, and his six-year-old daughter Amanda were in attendance.[24]
In 2006, Quaid, who acted inBrokeback Mountain, sued the producers for misrepresenting the film as "a low-budget, art house film with no prospect of making money" in order to secure Quaid's professional acting services at below-market rates.[25][26]
In 2009, Quaid and his wife were arrested for allegedly defrauding an innkeeper in Santa Barbara by using an invalid credit card to pay a $10,000 bill. The two were released on bail that evening and subsequently paid most of the bill.[27] However, they repeatedly failed to appear in court and warrants were issued for their arrest.[28] They eventually appeared in court the following year where the case was dismissed against Quaid for lack of evidence. His wife, Evi, pleadedno contest to a misdemeanor count of fraud and was placed on probation for three years in addition to having to spend 240 hours incommunity service.[29]
In September 2010, Quaid and his wife were charged with burglary after they spent five days occupying the guest house in a vacant home they once owned in Santa Barbara. The Quaids claimed that the home was wrongfully transferred to a third party by the use of a forged signature. Warrants for their arrest were issued after they failed to appear in court, and as a result, they also forfeited their bail.[30]
In October 2010, Quaid and his wife moved to Vancouver, Canada, where they soughtasylum protections under the CanadianImmigration and Refugee Protection Act, stating that they feared for their lives in the United States.[31][32][33] Border authorities arrested the couple for their outstanding warrants in the U.S. After they were granted bail, Quaid gave a press interview,[34] and later, the couple's asylum-seeking story was detailed in an article byVanity Fair.[35][36] Quaid's wife Evi was granted Canadian citizenship in 2011, based on her parentage, and Quaid sought permanent resident status as the husband of a Canadian.[37] In January 2013, this request was denied.[38]
Quaid lived inMontreal beginning in 2013 and was briefly arrested for not checking in as a non-resident.[39] In 2014, the Quaids sued theU.S. State Department for revoking their passports in 2011.[40][41] By 2015, Quaid's legal appeals in Canada were exhausted, and he was notified he was to be deported.[42] One week prior to the deportation date, the couple drove across the Canadian border intoVermont, where they were detained byU.S. Customs. The couple were detained pending an extradition procedure ordered by the State of California.
On review of the State of California's case, the Vermont judge found irregularities, and voided the extradition request,[43] whereupon the Quaids were released and allowed to remain in Vermont without conditions.[44] With his lawyer at his side, Quaid asserted in a press conference that the reason he was released was that the California judge had issued an arrest warrant before the alleged crime had been committed.[45] Quaid and his wife planned to make Vermont their permanent home, as his wife grew up there.[46] As of 2021, when Quaid considered a run in theCalifornia gubernatorial recall election, it was unclear whether the case against the Quaids was still open, according toTheWrap.[47]
After 2016, Quaid became an outspoken supporter ofDonald Trump, and later became a proponent of theconspiracy theory that Trump's defeat in the2020 United States presidential election was the result of widespread election fraud. Three weeks after the election, Trump, onhis Twitter account, retweeted some of Quaid's video material claiming election fraud and wrote "Thank you Randy, working hard to clean up the stench of the 2020 Election Hoax!"[48]
... the Quaids, listed in their 2000 Los Angeles bankruptcy filing as Randall R. Quaid and Evzenya H. Quaid ...
Some of the names here will be familiar only to die-hard fans; others, like Murphy, defined what was funny for generations of viewers.
